Diana Ross and the Supremes with the Temptations

Diana Ross and the Supremes with the Temptations

Diana Ross & The Supremes Join The Temptations is, as the title implies, a collaborative album combining Motown's two best selling groups, Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations. Issued by Motown in late 1968 to coincide with the broadcast of the Supremes/Temptations TCB television special, the album was a success, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200. Originally the lead single was to have been "The Impossible Dream" as featured in the climax to the TV spectacular TCB. Read more on Last.fm

Diana Ross & The Supremes Join The Temptations is, as the title implies, a collaborative album combining Motown's two best selling groups, Diana Ross & the Supremes and The Temptations. Issued by Motown in late 1968 to coincide with the broadcast of the Supremes/Temptations TCB television special, the album was a success, reaching #2 on the Billboard 200. Originally the lead single was to have been "The Impossible Dream" as featured in the climax to the TV spectacular TCB. However, it was decided to release "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" as a single instead even though it wasn't featured on TCB.

This became a number-two hit on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the R&B singles chart, and the follow-up, "I'll Try Something New", was a Top 30 hit. A third single, "I Second That Emotion", was released exclusively in the United Kingdom, where it became a Top 20 hit.
Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations marks the first on-record appearance of new Temptations lead singer Dennis Edwards, who was brought in as David Ruffin's replacement in July 1968.
All of the tracks on the album are covers of songs for other artists. Both "I Second That Emotion" and "I'll Try Something New" were originally recorded by Motown's Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, while "I'm Gonna Make You Love Me" was an outside hit for Dee Dee Warwick before it became a hit for the Supremes and Temptations. Motown's Marvin Gaye had previously had hits with "Try It Baby" and, as a duet with Tammi Terrell, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough".

"This Guy's in Love with You" was a hit for Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass , while "Funky Broadway" had been recorded as a hit for Wilson Pickett. The Sweet Inspirations' signature song, "Sweet Inspirations", is also covered here, as is Stevie Wonder's "A Place in the Sun", The Four Tops' "Then", and the show tune "The Impossible Dream" from Man of La Mancha.
Frank Wilson served as executive producer of the project. Diana Ross & the Supremes Join the Temptations, joint-recorded at both the main Hitsville USA studio in Detroit, Michigan, the Golden World studio in Detroit, and satellite studios in Los Angeles, primarily features leads by Diana Ross of the Supremes and Eddie Kendricks of The Temptations, with additional leads by Temptations Dennis Edwards, Paul Williams, Otis Williams, and Melvin Franklin. Read more on Last.fm.

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